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Case Studies are observations and profiles of the microfinance industry and microfinance institutions in particular regions.
International and Mexican donors helped Financiera Compartamos grow from a
small, non-governmental organization in 1991 to the largest microfinance
institution in Latin America in 2004, raising funds in the financial markets
while maintaining an unswerving commitment to serving poor women. This case tell
the story of how it happened.
This case study tells the twenty year story of how Agence française de
développement (AFD) in the Republic of Guinée managed the trade-offs between
reaching poor, rural customers with savings and credit and also reaching
institutional and financial sustainability.
A change in Dutch microfinance funding policy led to successful public-private
partnerships that brought private financial expertise to microfinance funding.
Government funded not-for-profit development agencies partnered with socially
responsible financial institutions and the result was an increase in the amount,
range and flexibility of financial instruments offered to microfinance
institutions (MFIs). This case tells the story of how it happened.
These cases (prepared for the international conference in Shanghai, May 2004)
represent powerful examples of scaling up microfinance. These diverse
institutions made conscious decisions to pursue scale while serving poor
clienteles, demonstrating creativity and a willingness to take risk, while
operating under commercial business principles.
This document discusses the results of extensive market research conducted by CGAP at the end of 2001 in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua,and Mexico. It offers separate profiles of microfinance in Central America and Mexico, with a focus on the various players in the sector. It then outlines the main challenges faced by the microfinance industry in the region.
This paper draws from existing literature on and evaluations of Financial Services Associations (FSA) to review performance to date and raise key questions on issues related to institutional sustainability. Topics covered include FSA products and services, outreach, financial sustainability, competition, governance, formal sector linkages, legal and regulatory environment, and donor support.
This informal note outlines some observations that emerged from a recent CGAP study on MFI competition in Bangladesh.
This case study describes how donors successfully supported MFI product development. Initiated by Swisscontact (a nongovernmental organization), led by Micro-Save Africa (a donor-funded project providing product development services), and supported by DFID, EU, UNDP, and AfriCap, Equity Building Society's product development capacity has grown rapidly.
This case study describes how 15 very different donor agencies worked in concert with local microfinance institutions (MFIs) to develop a joint reporting format in Uganda.
This case study details a successful microfinance apex fund that was designed and managed by the World Bank with bilateral donor support from Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Japan.
This case study explains how donor flexibility enabled an MFI to secure the mix of capital required for long-term growth. The flexibility of donors such as the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the Ford Foundation, and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) allowed BASIX, an innovative new Indian MFI, to build a diverse and reliable funding base.
In 2002 UNDP Bangladesh closed down the microfinance components of its empowerment projects. This action showed rare courage and good donor practice in an advanced microfinance market.
Despite an initial reluctance to undertake a microfinance program within a large state bank, the World Bank chose to take a chance on an apparently risky endeavor. The risk paid off. This case study tells the story of how it happened.
A case study of USAID support to the microfinance sector in Haiti, 1995 - present. The story of a donor that recognized opportunity, was flexible, took risks, and invested the time and resources needed to build a microfinance industry.
German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) enabled the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives in Thailand to realize the potential of rural poor Thais to save. Innovative marketing strategies, including prize drawings and parties, have been highly successful in encouraging saving.
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